So, this is a folklore / paranormal stuff question. I’m trying to find references to this thing that is a known thing in mr. lurker’s family and now appears to be affecting mr. lurker. I’m wondering if anyone here has heard of something similar elsewhere or knows folklore on it.

The thing, is something mr. lurker told me about his mum years ago when he said, “she’s smelling flowers again” as a warning to be gentle with her. She has a history of getting the smell of flowers, particularly roses, out of nowhere before someone close to her dies. Usually within a few days, maybe a week, geographical distance doesn’t matter. (I was skeptical — didn’t voice my skepticism to her of course because that would be an asshole move — but it has consistently happened over the years I’ve known her.)

Monday, mr. lurker was sitting at the computer and suddenly asked me if I could smell flowers. To say I have a much better small than he does would be an understatement. His sense of smell is mostly destroyed from chronic sinus problems and years of painting (turpentine). He will occasionally get a phantom smell of burning, but that’s a known medical thing. He’s never had a phantom smell of flowers before. (Of the two of us, be more likely to have olfactory hallucinations I occasionally get hyperosmia.) There was nothing.

His uncle died this morning.

Searching the internet is giving me a bunch of results on how if you are elderly losing your sense of smell is a good predictor of death. And some “paranormal” stuff on smelling flowers or perfume or another smell associated with a spirit that is present, or experiencing a funereal flowers scent at the time of/after death. Or apparently the Virgin Mary.

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So, I’m wondering if anyone around knows of folklore or stories on getting a phantom scent of flowers or roses as a predictor or omen of death, because my google-fu is failing me. And mr. lurker & family are dealing with grief and a lot of anger right now (the extended family are being absolute vicious assholes), I’m looking for a bit of a distraction.